Cold-Formed Steel Framing Standards

In 2023, the cold-formed steel framing industry saw major changes in how standards would be developed. The American Iron and Steel Institute completely stopped its construction code advocacy and standards development work. The former Steel Industry Code Forum became the Steel Associations Council, with representatives from multiple steel industries representing both cold-formed and hot-rolled steel interests. Starting in 2023, this group discussed the future of the standards and building codes, with respect to steel. Although most code issues have been resolved, there are still program areas that need both funding and labor to ensure the strength of the CFS framing market through the next decade.

My job, as the new executive director of the Steel Framing Industry Association, is to nurture the growth of steel framing, leverage all new forces and technologies that can further this growth, and ensure that the CFS standards development process remains active.

The big question that many in the CFS framing industry started asking in 2023 was, “What will happen to the AISI framing standards? Will they still be referenced by the building codes?” The answer to the second part of the question is yes; both the International Building Code and the International Residential Code will continue to reference the CFS framing standards. For the IBC, this includes references in the steel chapter (22), the exterior wall chapter (14) and the gypsum chapter (25). The answer to the first part of the question is a bit more complex.

What will happen to the AISI standards?

Breaking Down the Standards

This answer varies depending on the specific set of standards. AISI maintained 32 standards, which fall primarily into four categories:

• AISI S100, North American Specification for the Design of Cold-Formed Steel Structural Members: The parent document that covers the structural design of all cold-formed steel, no matter what its final application is. S100 is referenced by standards in the metal building industry, the steel deck industry, the steel rack industry, for some types of steel tubes and, of course, the CFS framing industry. Some non-building industries also reference S100, such as steel culverts, steel power transmission towers and steel bridge decks.
• AISI S200, Framing Standard Series: These standards are specific to stud, track, trusses and accessories for what the building code defines as “light-frame construction.” The primary standards in this group are S220 for nonstructural members and S240 for structural members, but other standards include residential, seismic and thermal design, as well as AISI S202 (Code of Standard Practice for Cold-Formed Steel Structural Framing).
• AISI S900, Test Standard Series: The test standards related to CFS framing are among the newest set of documents from AISI. As the industry grew and standards matured during the 2000s and 2010s, it was found that completely relying on ASTM and other standards for testing was not in the best interest of those designing and using products made from sheet steel. Therefore, like ASTM, AISI started developing a series of standards specific to sheet steel elements. The applications range from steel deck diaphragms to framing clips and connectors.
• Other AISI Standards: Several standards and portions of standards are specific to other industries, including metal buildings, steel deck diaphragms and steel storage racks.

How Will the Standards be Affected?

Code-referenced standards must be maintained by an ANSI-accredited or similar organization that is certified through a specific process with rules for standards development and maintenance. Therefore, when AISI stopped maintaining the standards, they needed to go to another accredited standards development organization so they could maintain their status and still be appropriately referenced in the building codes. The Steel Deck Institute offered to maintain the former AISI standards until a more suitable arrangement was developed and to give other associations time to become accredited SDOs. At the end of 2023, AISI transferred all 32 of its standards to SDI. For the first time in over 75 years, AISI was no longer an SDO.

Also during this time, SFIA and other organizations, such as the Metal Building Manufacturers Association and the American Institute of Steel Construction, started working with their members to see the best way to incorporate standards development within their respective associations. Within the CFS framing industry, there were discussions of various ways to develop the standards and fund the standards development process, including forming an entirely new independent group to write, update and maintain the standards specific to CFS framing. The plan that is now being implemented, which AISI had already begun, was to place the steel framing standards with the CFS industry’s lead association, which is now SFIA. In 2025, six S200 standards and 12 S900 standards related to steel framing will be maintained and developed by the SFIA.

Of course, SFIA had to become an SDO first. CFS framing standards development and code advocacy at AISI had an annual budget of more than $1 million, which was funded mostly by the steel mills. While planning to assume responsibility for just a portion of the AISI standards, the SFIA explored options to lower the funding required. Rather than having multiple in-person meetings of engineers, researchers, manufacturers and industry experts, which is costly, SFIA has decided to use the “canvass process” for framing standards development. Through this process, topic-specific task groups and canvass committees are formed to do the work of developing framing and test standards, and these groups eventually vote on what will be included in the final standards referenced by the building codes.

The Future of the Standards

In October, the SFIA sent out a request for interested parties to participate in the canvass process. The SFIA Standards Committee has been working to finalize the process for developing the six framing standards and 12 test standards that affect CFS framing. There has been positive interest and engagement. On Nov. 26, SFIA hosted a free webinar on the new process to help answer questions on how individuals and groups can stay engaged.

Some questions remain to be answered. For example, AISI S400 (North American Standard for Seismic Design of Cold-Formed Steel Structural Systems) includes provisions that affect multiple industries, so work still needs to be done on how these provisions will eventually be resolved. In addition, the current thinking on the primary standard, AISI S100, is that it will likely be amalgamated into the hot-rolled steel standard, AISC S230.

The bottom line for contractors, manufacturers and code enforcement personnel is that there will be no major changes in the building code or code-referenced CFS framing standards anytime soon. The 2024 IBC and IRC reference AISI standards, and the 2027 IBC and IRC will reference the latest edition of these standards, which will be finalized under the SFIA process in 2026. No name changes or scope changes for any of these standards are planned for the near future, so ICC will consider these revised standards as administrative updates.

For those interested in becoming part of the code development process for CFS framing, please reach out to SFIA representative Meredith Perez at meredith@steelframing.org. Moreover, for more detailed information on the process of framing standards development, you can watch the Nov. 26 “Inside Standards Development: An Introduction to the SFIA Standards Committee & Canvass Group Process” webinar, which is now available on-demand. You’ll find the webinar at pathlms.com/sfia/courses.